


Single Parents' Dinner Club

by ama



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Collection: Purimgifts Day 2, Friendship, Gen, Single Parents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-17
Updated: 2016-03-17
Packaged: 2018-05-27 05:15:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6271033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ama/pseuds/ama
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Olivia and Rafael chat about kids over Chinese food.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Single Parents' Dinner Club

**Author's Note:**

  * For [csichick_2](https://archiveofourown.org/users/csichick_2/gifts).



> There was a moment in "Thought Criminal" that made me wonder "what if Barba had a kid?" (this was before we saw how awkward he was with Noah in canon) and anyway the thought immediately following was "he and Liv would get together to swap parenting magazines and stuff." So I came back to it a few months later for this challenge!

“So you would recommend Huang?” Rafael said, poking through a container of chicken and broccoli.

“Yes, definitely. We’ve worked with him for years. He’s a good psychiatrist and juries usually find him credible, if a bit careful.”

Olivia had called her sitter and had Noah dropped off at the courthouse, and was currently trying to figure out how to feed herself and her son while he was balanced on her lap. There were two spoons in front of her, one in a bottle of puréed carrots and another in a box of pork fried rice, and Barba was watching with some amusement to make sure she didn’t mix up the two of them.

“You know my favorite word,” he said with a grin. He set the chicken and broccoli down and stood up, holding out his arms. “Olivia, here, you’ve barely touched your food. I’ll take care of Noah.”

“Oh you don’t have to—”

“Don’t worry about it. I haven’t done this in a while; it’s good to practice.”

Noah wiggled as he was passed over the table, but he quite happily latched onto Rafael once he was settled. Olivia passed the carrots and a towel, and then set about her own meal, which was almost untouched.

“I appreciate this, by the way,” she said, waving her spoon around to indicate Rafael’s empty office. “I can’t really have Noah in my office very often, or even the squad room—it doesn’t give the right impression, and with 1PP still breathing down my neck...”

“Single mothers are held up to an unrealistic standard of competency to prove they can do their jobs,” Rafael said succinctly. “What else is new? I know how you feel, though; I was the same way in Brooklyn. Small office, people always in the way. I don’t think I ever even tried to bring the twins there. It’s better here—more space and they’re older now, so they can entertain themselves with picture books for a while.”

Noah interrupted by trying to stuff Barba’s tie in his mouth—unfortunately for him, Barba had plenty of practice dissuading that, so the baby satisfied himself by just yanking at it vigorously. Olivia smiled, watching him, and shoveled rice into her mouth at as dignified a pace as she could muster as they discussed the case further. It had been a long, tough day. It was a comfort, having Noah with her after those kinds of days, even though it did feel strange talking business in front of him. He was a living, breathing, reminder of the fact that stories had happy endings.

“I think he’s had enough,” Barba said after a few minutes. “And no offense, Liv, this suit is not meant for burping babies.”

“I’ll take him,” she chuckled. “So where are the twins tonight?”

“At my mom’s for a sleepover.”

Olivia put a towel over her shoulder and lifted Noah, thinking absently about brothers and sisters. She had only thought to tell Simon about Noah a few weeks ago; he still hadn’t regained custody of his own children, so she could tell it hurt a little bit, but he had still been happy for her, and she had ended up thinking about when they first reconnected. Sitting on her couch swapping stories and drinking beer. It was nice to have a sibling...

“What’s it like with two?” she mused, patting Noah’s back.

When there was no immediate response to her question, she looked up and found Barba looking at her with one eyebrow raised and a smirk on his face.

“What?”

“Olivia…”

 

[ ](http://s621.photobucket.com/user/amaXdear/media/single%20parents%20dinner%20club.jpg.html)


End file.
